


Trust and Hope

by Awakened_Angel



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, Comfort/Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Sexual Content, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-30
Updated: 2013-08-30
Packaged: 2017-12-25 02:56:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 18,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/947790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Awakened_Angel/pseuds/Awakened_Angel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma never left Killian on the beanstalk, and he never went back to Cora. Bonus: Emma kissed Killian. Follow their journey as they attempt to get back to Storybrooke, and what happens if they do.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Times are Changing

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing except the plot of this story. Chapter is rated very low.

  
**Chapter One**   
**Times are Changing**   
_"And all around these Golden Beacons,  
I see nothing but Black"_   


Killian hopped down from the beanstalk and brushed off the dirt from his leather pants. He turned back to Emma and held out a hand. Hanging onto the vines of the beanstalk with one hand, she gripped his hand with her free one. He helped her leap onto the stone platform surrounding the long stem and took her by the waist, swinging her around onto the floor.

"Thanks." Emma breathed, straightening her jacket. She looked around at the large, destitute-looking castle and gasped. "What happened here?" She asked.

"It's where the final battle was." Hook replied, and caught sight of her hand. "Give me your hand." He said quickly.

"What?"

Hook gestured. "Your hand-it's cut. Let me help you."

Emma shook her head. "No, no. It's fine." She protested.

"No, it's not." Hook took her hand against her will and, drawing her close to him, he inspected it carefully.

Emma glared darkly at him. "So, now you're going to be a gentleman?"

Hook leaned in close and whispered, "Giants can smell blood. And I'm always a gentleman." He drew a small bottle out and uncorked it with his teeth, spitting it back on the ground, and poured it all over Emma's bloody hand.

She cringed and gasped in pain, trying to wrench her hand away from him. "What the hell is that?"

"It's rum." He answered simply. "And a bloody waste of it." He removed his scarf from around his neck and wrapped it around Emma's palm. "Now, here's the plan: We wait for the giant to fall asleep. And when he does, we'll sneak past him into his cave. It's where the treasure lies-where the compass is."

"And then?"

Hook tied the scarf in a knot with his teeth and tugged slowly, keeping his hooded eyes on Emma, looking darkly at her, holding her gaze. "And then we run like hell." He whispered in her ear.

Emma leaned back a little. "I don't have time to wait for a giant to fall asleep." She stated. "The powder Mulan gave us-we need to use it. We got to knock him out."

Hook cocked his head to the side, still standing close to her. "Well, that's riskier."

"Riskier than waiting for a giant to fall asleep?" Emma countered.

Hook looked down at her, his eyes straying just a little too far down to her lips for a second too long, and grinned. "Point taken." He said. "You're a tough lass. You'd make one hell of a pirate."

Emma let go of him and looked at his wrist. "Who's Milah, on the tattoo?" She asked, gesturing to the name etched on his wrist in a red heart.

Hook averted his eyes and walked away past her. "Someone from long ago."

"Where is she?" Emma asked quietly.

"She's gone." He responded shortly.

Emma paused, thinking back. "Gold," She realized. "Rumpelstiltskin. He took more than your hand, didn't he?" She asked. "That's why you want to kill him."

Hook turned on her angrily. "For someone who's never been in love, you're quite perceptive, aren't you?"

"Maybe I was-once.

* * *

Emma grabbed the bag of poppy powder from Hook's satchel and perched herself atop a statue near the entrance of the castle. Hook, still on the ground, dragged a bone to a large metal shield. "You ready?" He asked. Emma nodded, and Hook banged on the shield with the bone, the noise vibrating through the whole courtyard. Footsteps thundered, shaking the two of them. Emma gripped the neck of the statue and held on. When she looked back up, the giant was there, right in front of her, looking around. "Oh, damn it."

Hook slowly led the giants towards the direction of Emma. "Hey! You big git!" The giant looked down. "Yeah, you. You want to kill a human? Huh? You want to kill a human? Well I'm the worst human around!" Emma raised one eyebrow as he spread his arms wide. "So come on, then!"

Enraged, the giant grabbed at Hook and swung his face toward the statue, and Emma threw the bag in his face. The poppy powder exploded into the air, shimmering into the air. He fell to the ground, unconscious, but Hook was nowhere to be seen. Emma turned her head wildly to catch sight of him. "Hook?" She called. "Hook!"

Suddenly, he appeared out from under the giant. "He's out cold." He smiled at her. "I don't mean to upset you, Emma, but I think we make quite the team."

emma rolled her eyes and hopped down from the statue. "Let's go steal a compass."

He led her inside the castle, passing various rooms until he came upon a set of large double doors. Hook looked over at her and gave her a knowing smile. "The treasure room." He whispered exaggeratedly at her. Emma rolled her eyes and they went inside. The moment they were in, Emma stopped short. "They kill all the giant housekeepers, too?" She asked sarcastically. "How are we supposed to find a compass int his mess?"

"By looking." Hook retorted. "Start searching. I wonder how much treasure we could carry down the beanstalk. . . ." He caught Emma's glare and shrugged. "In addition to the compass, of course."

Emma looked away and began walking forward, almost tripping over a skeleton with a sword. The name ' _Jack_ ' was etched onto the blade. "What the hell?" She gasped.

"That . . . would be Jack." Hook explained, clasping his hands together as he joined her.

"As in Jack. . . ."

"The giant killer." He grinned.

Emma snorted. "What, with that toothpick?" She nudged the tip of the sword with her leather boot.

"Packs quite a wallop, you'd be surprised." Hook kept on walking, inspecting the room, when Emma suddenly pulled him back, involuntarily bringing their bodies close together. He turned to face her and smirked, putting a hand on her cheek. "About bloody time." He murmured.

Emma's eyes widened as she realized their position and brought her face away from his when he wouldn't let go of her. "It's a trip wire." She said avoiding his eyes, and looking at the cage attached to the wire. "Quite a security system."

Hook rolled his eyes. "Well, that's a plausible excuse for grabbing me, but next time," he stroked a finger down the length of her face and raised her chin with his hook, bringing her face closer to him so their lips were almost touching, "don't stand on ceremony." And then he let her go.

Emma straightened herself out, slightly flustered. "Let's find the compass and go home." She waved her hand for him to step over the wire. "After you."

He hopped over the trip wire and walked around a pile of gold, nudging it with his toe and making it clatter to the ground. Emma jumped at the noise and looked over. "So, it's just . . . in here somewhere?" She asked.

Hook shrugged. "Allegedly." he walked to a high platform. "Give me a boost, would you, love?" He asked without glancing at her, so he missed the infamous eye roll she gave him.

"So I can't see what you're pocketing? No way. You give me a boost." Hook paused with his hand on the platform and looked at her darkly. "Try something new, darling. It's called trust."

Emma hesitated at the word. "We do it side by side and fast. Who knows how long before the-" Gold crashed all around the room and thundering footsteps were heard coming closer.

"Someone's up." Hook warned. "Quickly. Get under something!" He grabbed Emma's hand and ran to a corner. The ceiling shook and debris clattered onto where he was standing.

"Hook?" She gasped. A strong hand that was bigger than Emma herself swooped down and grabbed her.

Emma struggled in the giant's fist as he squeezed her tighter. "I'm not what you think!" She gasped for breath as she tried to move her arms.

"You're a thief, and you poisoned me. So yeah, I'm pretty sure you're exactly what I think." The giant shot back.

"No!" Emma yelled. "Look, you have a compass." She explained. She tried to move around again and dropped her head down. "I need it."

"I don't care what you need." The giant retorted. He tightened his grip as Emma struggled to breath.

"No, for my son! To save my son!" Emma shouted. "Don't you have a family?" She asked desperately.

"No." The giant screamed. "Because humans killed them all."

Emma's vision began to fade in and out of focus as the giant squeezed harder and harder, and she bit him. He let out a little cry, and dropped her, and Emma ran for Jack's skeleton. She grabbed the sword and jumped over the trip wire while the giant ran to catch up with her. Emma sliced the wire in half and the cage fell on the giant. "Nice security system." Emma complimented. "Efficient." She pointed the sword at the giant's face.

"No! No, no, no, no!" The giant protested.

"I can tell by your face you know what this is." Emma stated. "Let me guess-it's dipped in some sort of poison." She rested the point on the ground. "You have a compass. I need it."

"You're going to kill me either way." The giant bit back. "Go ahead. Kill me!"

Emma shook her head. "You don't know me."

"I know your kind. They massacred us, and destroyed our beans."

"I heard it the other way." Emma defended.

The giant wrinkled his brow. "That's because the victors get to tell the story." Emma poked the sword closer. "Okay! Stop. Here." He slid the compass across the floor and Emma retrieved it. "See? I'm not the bad guy."

Emma paused. "Maybe you were telling the truth. Doesn't really matter. I have to go. Are there any more of you?" She asked as she raised the sword again.

The giant's face became very sad, and lonely. "No." He replied. "I'm alone."

Emma hesitated, then lowered her sword and began to stalk back. When her back turned, the giant broke free of his cage and grabbed a boulder covering a tunnel that leads outside, and threw it across the room. "Go."

"Why?"

"Because you could have killed me, and you didn't." The giant said. "You get one favor, now go before I change my mind."

Emma nodded and ran to where the ceiling had fallen on Hook. She shoved a small piece out of the way and grasped the limp hand she saw hanging out. She pulled him out, not without difficulty, and looked to see where the giant was. He was gone.

Hook grinned at her. "You are bloody brilliant." He praised. "Amazing. May I see it? The compass?"

Emma pulled it out of her pocket, clutching it in her hand tightly. Hook, however, made no move to take it. "It's more beautiful than legend." He whispered hoarsely. His voice was so low, Emma wasn't sure he had meant for her to hear.

Hook held out his hand for her to take, glancing up at her hopefully. "Come. Let's go."

Emma looked down at his outstretched hand for a second too long before his face fells ever so slightly, and she held it tightly in her own. Hook smiled up at her and stood up from his crouching position. "We should go." He said.

Emma nodded, not letting go of his hand. He made no move to draw it back. They looked into each other's eyes. . . .

And then she kissed him.

Why, she had no idea. She just did. Something about them making it out of this alive, and now they were one step closer to going home.

Hook let out a small noise of pleasurable surprise, and kissed her back, moving his lips expertly over hers. His hand threaded into her golden blond locks and twisted them tightly in his fist. Emma made a soft noise of contentment and reached up to twine her arms around his neck, bringing him closer to her so they were pressed up against each other. Hook walked her backwards, shoving her against the wall, pinning her there with his body and managing to never break their kiss. She gasped slightly, surprised at his movement, and kissed him a little more forcefully. Hook stroked his tongue across her bottom lip, begging him for entrance, and that one touch jerked her back to reality-or, whatever this was.

Emma was about to lean away when she realized Hook had her backed up against the stone wall, and she mentally cursed him. She unwrapped her arms from his neck and shoved his chest back forcefully.

Hook stepped away from her, slightly breathless, his face a mask of pure shock. "What?" He said, his words slightly slurred. "What's wrong?"

Emma shook her head and began walking away. "That never happened." She said firmly. "We need to go. They'll be waiting for us."


	2. Wishful Thinking

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song in the beginning is Wanted-Hunter Hayes (Chapter One was Black and Gold-Sam Sparro)

  
**Chapter Two  
** **Wishful Thinking**   
_"I wanna wrap you up, wanna kiss your lips  
I wanna make you feel wanted."_   


Emma hopped down the last few feet of the beanstalk, her feet hitting the ground hard. She gasped as the impact shook her. Killian followed not long after, leaping stealthily to the ground. She hated him just for landing more quietly than her.

Mary Margaret, Mulan, and Aurora were asleep, their heads resting on rolled up blankets. The moon cast silvery shadows over their sleeping, peaceful faces. Emma walked over and sat on her knees beside her mother.

A hand brushed her hair away from her shoulder, and Emma jerked away from it, turning her head around to see Killian standing over her. "How's your hand?" He asked.

Emma looked down at her palm still wrapped in the scarf. "I-I don't know." She stuttered, cursing herself for her unsteady voice.

Killian knelt down on one knee, keeping his eyes locked on her face, and took her hand in his. He used the tip of his hook to undo the knot in the scarf, tugging it away from her. The blood had stopped, crusting around the cut. "Better." He observed.

Emma leaned a little back, away from Hook. "Thank you." She said shortly.

"You're welcome." He said.

Killian changed position, sitting down next to her. "Is there any chance you might tell me what happened up there on that beanstalk?"

She raised one eyebrow, masking her face with unconcern, but there was no mistaking the expression in her eyes: one of burning, of a bright, blazing light. "We climbed the beanstalk. We got the compass." She said. "And we came back down. And now . . . we're here."

"Yes." Killian agreed. "Now we're here. However," he leaned in closer to her, "care to explain what happened when you kissed me?"

"Kissed?" Emma repeated stupidly; he was leaning in closer and closer, causing her to bend back. Her legs, which were still folded under her, hurt from her posture.

"You know, when two pairs of lips meet. Could be described as the most purest and gentlest touch ever to be experienced." Killian's eyes darkened dangerously. "And the most . . ." he grasped the back of her neck, drawing her up to him so their lips were so close, " _sinful_."

Emma fought back a sound of protest. "Why did you kiss me?" He asked hoarsely.

"I don't know." She whispered.

"You bloody well  _do_  know, and I'm not letting you go until you answer me." His eyes traveled down her body until they rested on her knees. "And I doubt that's the most comfortable of positions."

"Bastard." Emma choked out, clenching her hands to keep from slapping him.

Killian yanked her closer, shaking her. "Answer me."

"Why is it so important to you?" Emma asked desperately.

Instead of answering her, Killian brought his lips down on hers, kissing her roughly. Emma let out a high-pitched gasp and kept her lips firmly closed, refusing to let him get a response out of her. It was only when his hand tangled in her hair, and his hook strayed to the small of her back, pressing her stomach flat against his. She breathed sharply through her nose and her head fell back. His lips kissed her chin softly before moving down to her neck. It was not sweet, it was not gentle-it was rough and passionate, and every single word that came to her mind when she thought of that one name:  _Killian_.

Suddenly, he chuckled against her throat and leaned back. "Killian?" He asked. His voice was filled with amusement, but his eyes were filled with veiled hope.

Emma was confused for a moment, before her eyes widened in realization. She'd said his name. Out loud. His  _name._  Actual name. Oh, God, she was screwed. "That is your name, isn't it?"

"I've been avoiding that name for a good couple of years. Besides, to you, I was always Hook, wasn't I?"

Emma snorted. "Fine, then,  _Hook_." She felt a twinge of regret as he lost the happy look in his faces, like smoke evaporating in your hand.

"Did I say I wanted you to stop saying that?" Killian asked.

"When have I ever done what you wanted? Without you ever having to force me?"

Killian's face glinted with mirth at the trap she'd just unknowingly walked into. "No one asked you to kiss me up there, love . . . or say my name like that. Or kiss me back-"

"Woah!" Emma interrupted, then lowered voice as Mulan stirred slightly in her sleep. "I did not kiss you back.  _You attacked me_." She said, then paused. "Why?"

He grinned at her. "Exactly."

Emma wrinkled her brow at that one word, looking at his back as he got up, preparing to walk away from her. "What do you mean?" She asked, getting up to follow him. Her legs, stiff and sore from leaning them back so far for so long, immediately failed her, and her knees buckled.

Killian's arms shot out to catch her, his hand and hook hitching around her waist. Emma hissed sharply, and he realized his hook was digging through the material of her leather jacket. He righted her and drew back his arms hastily. "Sorry."

She nodded, straightening her jacket. "What did you mean when you said that? Exactly?"

"The same reason you want to know why I kissed you . . . is the same reason why you want to know why I kissed you." Killian said, and for once, his eyes did not hold the playful teasing they normally did when it came to her. They were utterly bare, dark, and, in a way, broken.

"Then why should you ask why I kissed you if it was apparently for the same reason?" Emma asked breathlessly, gasping at straws.

He looked down. "Believe me, darling." He said, then paused. Leaning in closer to her so they were almost kissing again, he thought better of it and retracted slightly, but still close enough for her to touch. "I wish it was.


	3. Dreams and Nightmares

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Perfect Two' by Auburn

  
**Chapter Three**  
Dreams and Nightmares  
 _"Don't know if I could ever be without you, cause boy you complete me,  
And in time I know that we'll both see that we're all we need."_  


Mary Margaret and the rest finally woke up after Killian had walked away from Emma. She stood there, shell-shocked, when she heard a shriek of surprise. She turned around to see Mary Margaret running towards her, and she caught her daughter in a tight hug. Emma felt the breath rush out of her as she knocked full-force into her.

"Emma! You're back!" Aurora exclaimed, standing up. Her hair was slightly mussed, the crown that wrapped her hair lopsided.

Mulan gave Emma a slight smile and looked around. "Where's Hook?" She asked.

Emma turned around. "He's right-" She stopped short when she realized that the spot where Hook had once been was now vacant. "Hook?" She called. No answer. "Hook!"

"What?" He yelled back, appearing from the side of the beanstalk. "Oh. Good morning Sleeping Beauties." He said, seeing the three other women awake.

"You guys got the compass?" Mary Margaret asked.

Emma nodded, bringing it out of her pocket. "Right here." She said, giving Killian a sidelong glance. "One step closer to getting the ashes from Cora." She breathed.

"And then going home." Mary Margaret finished.

"We should move out." Killian announced. "It'll be getting light again soon, and I don't want any . . .  _unwelcome_  guests paying us a little visit." Without waiting for a response from any of them, he slung his satchel over his neck and began walking.

* * *

They found a relatively safe spot on top of a high hill. No one was really likely to come searching for them there, but they decided to skip making a fire so it wouldn't attract any unwanted attention. Emma sat on a log a little way away from the group, her elbows on her knees, and her chin in her hand. She could practically feel Killian's lips on hers . . . her neck . . . his hands tangled in her hair, kissing her roughly, exactly like she knew he would. . . .

"You okay?" Mary Margaret asked, coming to sit next to her.

Emma turned and nodded, a light blush creeping up her face. Mary Margaret and Mulan and Aurora were right there when they were kissing. They could have woken up any minute and seeing them like that would have been the end of her. Or if they hand't woken up at all, and Emma had never said Killian's name the way she did, where would they have gone? What would have happened?

"You seem a little . . . out of it." She commented.

"I'm fine, Mary Margaret." Emma said a little too firmly, as if she was trying to assure herself more than her mother-which, really, she was.

Mary Margaret nodded, wrapped up in her own thoughts. "You should come sleep. After the day you've had . . . well, you need it."

Emma jerked her head to where Killian was standing, nursing the bottle of rum he'd used on her hand. And then he'd tied that damned scarf with his teeth.  _Fucking pirate_. "So does he."

"Yeah, well, I doubt he's going to listen to us telling him what to do."

"And what makes you think I will?" Emma said a little playfully, nudging her shoulder.

Mary Margaret smiled a little and then looked at Emma sternly. "Just come to bed soon, okay? I don't want to have to worry about you not sleeping, and then you'll be tired."

Emma nodded. "I will."

And she did. A couple hours later, when everybody but Killian, who was sitting on her abandoned log, was asleep, she finally went to bed to avoid any confrontation. She was asleep for maybe two, three hours when a rough hand woke her.

"What?" She muttered sleepily.

"No time for that, sweetheart, we've got to go." Killian said.

Emma opened her eyes and looked up, seeing his face looming above her. "What happened?"

"Ogres."

Emma immediately woke up fully, jumping up and putting on the jacket she was using as a pillow. Her hand went straight to her knife stuck in her boot and brought it out. "Where's everybody else?" She asked.

"Fighting." he took her hand and they ran together to the center of the campsite, where Mary Margaret was aiming her bow at one of the ogres.  _One of_  meaning one of four. One had already fallen, leaving behind three. Shit.

A second ogre snatched the bow from her hands and snapped it in half, leaving her weaponless. Mulan immediately came to her aid, handing her an extra sword, and ran off again. Aurora was nowhere in sight.

Killian drew his own sword and went straight for one of the ogres, stabbing it right in the leg. it let out a beastly yell, but didn't lose its stride. Emma ran to help him, slashing at the same leg. Together, they worked, trying to get the monster to drop so they could get at its eye. "Where's Aurora?" She asked between swings.

"Mulan took her to find shelter. They're going to come back as soon as they do."

"What, they just left?" Emma was furious.

"To protect us." Killian reminded her, finally sinking his sword deep into the ogre's shin, right up to the hilt. It dropped right to the ground, and Emma jabbed her knife through its eye, lodging it there.

"Shelter!" Mulan's voice rang out. "We found shelter!"

The two remaining ogres left turned towards the sound, and charged. Out of nowhere came a flying sword, and stuck straight in the center of one of their eyes. Mulan ran out from behind the trees and yanked it out, running past it without breaking her stride once. Emma had to admit, the girl was badass.

Mary Margaret and Mulan worked together to bring down the last one, and when it was finally over with, out came one more. Bigger than the other, uglier, smellier, and a hell of a lot stronger. It grabbed blindly for something to hold on to, and Mary Margaret cut a deep cut in its knee. It roared furiously, and the two women looked at each other before glancing at Emma and Killian.

"Go!" Mulan yelled. "Find Aurora! We'll take care of it."

Before Emma even had chance to protest, Killian had her hand in his and they ran back where Mulan had come bursting out from. Emma ripped her hand from his and paused by the edge. "We have to wait for them!" She begged.

Killian looked back into the trees, then at her, and with a defeated sigh, he ran back to her side. "GO!" Mary Margaret screamed, waving her sword wildly throughout the air. Emma faltered slightly, then looked at Killian. "Let's go." She said quietly.

Right as Mulan scratched the ogre deep by its temple, Killian took hold of her hand and, again, they went off into the night.

* * *

"Where's Aurora?" Emma asked herself aloud. They had been walking for hours, and even her jacket wasn't enough to keep her warm. She couldn't help shivering.

Killian noticed her movement, and shrugged out of his own coat, wrapping it snugly around her shoulders. "Thanks." She muttered. "Do you think they're okay?"

He nodded. "Of course." He said. "It's your mother, after all. With Mulan. The great ugly brute doesn't stand a bloody chance."

Emma laughed despite herself and sighed. "Thank you. For . . . helping us. Getting the compass with me. Not betraying us. Everything."

They were hard words for her to force out, that much Killian could tell. So he grinned at her instead. "Even kissing you?"

Emma snorted. "I wouldn't ask you to do it again." She stated, her voice going up at the end so he got her meaning.

Out of nowhere, their banter was done. He had her backed up against a tree in a second, his dark eyes glittering, face mere centimeters from hers. "And what makes you think," he breathed against her lips, "that I wouldn't just take it?"

"A-A gentleman would." Emma stuttered.

Killian let out a breathy laugh. "Sorry to disappoint you, love, but I'm no gentleman."

Emma stared into his eyes, the laughter gone from her own face. "Are you going to kiss me again?" She whispered.

"Do you want me to?"

Emma hesitated, maybe for a second too long, because he stepped away from her, yet he kept his hands on her arms. Killian brought her away from the tree and inspected her closely. "Don't move." He ordered, and she didn't. He circled her, his body so close to hers that she could feel it brushing ever-so-slightly against her sides, her back, anywhere that he was, she could feel him. "Tell me." He said hoarsely, moving a strand of her hair from her ear so she could hear him. He was pressed up against her back now, and she was glad because he couldn't see the expression on her face right now. "Tell me if you want me to kiss you right now. Say no, and I promise I will never try to again." He vowed, and Emma couldn't help it, she tensed. "Say yes . . ." his lips ghosted down her cheek, light as a feather, and she shuddered, "and I will kiss you like you have never been kissed before. No maybe, no probably. Yes or no, love."

She turned to face him, and she grabbed onto the collar of his shirt. "Yes. Just . . . just once."

Killian's eyes brightened. "Then let's make it count."

He brushed his lips against hers softly, and he was so gentle with her that she could have dropped to the floor right then. But that would have meant the kiss would be over, and she said only once. And he'd said to make it count, and fainting would have been the polar opposite. But she didn't  _want_  soft and gentle, and sweet-she wanted the kiss they'd shared at the bottom of the beanstalk. She wanted his lips on hers, her neck, everywhere he could get them.

Making sure their lips never parted, she removed her hands from his shirt and wrapped them around his neck, yanking his hair. Killian groaned, deep and low in his throat, and pushed his tongue past her lips without even asking for permission. Emma moaned longingly, and Killian smiled against her mouth.

Killian prepared to make a good quip about how he knew she would never be able to resist him, but then she pressed her body closer to his so they were flush against each other. Killian wrapped his arms around her waist and pushed her against the same tree as before. Of all the times she'd thought about kissing him, and then about their two kisses before, this was by far the best. There was no rush for a giant to yell at them to get the hell out, no risk of Mary Margaret or Mulan or Aurora waking up and catching them. They were completely alone right now. His hands took her wrists and pinned them above her head, using one hand to keep them there while his hook stroked down her cheek, shoulder, arm, caressing her sides and resting at her hip. Killian acted as though he knew what they both wanted and didn't pause to ask if he was right; he just took it.

Emma released a soft cry against his lips and he gasped, finally breaking the kiss with a strangled breath. "One kiss. That's it, right?"

Emma threw her head back against the tree and breathed deeply. "Right. One kiss."

Killian regarded her closely. "Are you going to try that again? Kiss me like that again and I might just break that little deal of ours."

Emma shook her head and brought him back down to kiss her again. He stopped her right before their lips met. "Emma. Stop for a moment."

She paused. "What?"

"If we continue . . . I don't know about you, but I won't be able to stop. And I know you say you want this now, but I don't want you to regret this-regret me, when you wake up tomorrow."

Emma shook her head. "I guess your right. Okay. Get off me." She shoved him back and bit her lip.

Killian obliged, stepping away from her a little bit. He still had her hands in his hand, his hook still at her wrist. Noticing her struggling a little to get free, he immediately let her go. "Sorry." He said.

Emma looked at him curiously. "Why are you sorry? For what?"

"Kissing you . . . like that." He breathed. "I shouldn't have done that."

She shook her head. "I wanted you to." She shrugged. "I said yes, didn't I? We just had to . . . get it off our chests, I guess." She tried to ignore the way his face fell when she said that. "Right?"

He nodded. "Right."


	4. Truth or Dare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Off to the Races' by Lana del Rey

  
**Chapter Four**  
Truth or Dare  
 _"And he shows me, he knows me, every inch of my tar black soul._  
He doesn't mind I have a flat broke-down life.  
In fact he says he thinks that's what he might like about me."  


Emma and Killian hadn't found Aurora. Or Mary Margaret. Or Mulan. They were officially lost. He didn't seem to want to admit, though ("Lost is such an ugly word, love.") Killian was upbeat and confident that they were going to find them, or they would find the two of them. Sometime soon. In the possible future. Maybe.

"Admit it." Emma spoke up finally, breaking the tense silence. "We're fucking lost."

"I will not admit to anything that isn't true." Killian said, smirking down at her. Seeing her frustrated glare, he relented. "Okay, okay. So we don't exactly know where in the forest we are-"

"See!"

"But that does not mean we don't know we're in a forest . . . which we do. So, technically, we're not lost, which means you're wrong when you say we don't know where we are."

Emma raised one eyebrow at him. "I can honestly say that we are lost  _inside this forest,_  then."

Refusing to give up his pride, Killian said, "Now that, I'll give you."

Emma shook her head angrily at him. "You are the most impossible, most annoying, unagreeable human being that I have ever had the misfortune to cross paths with." She spat.

Killian gave her a look suggesting otherwise. "You didn't seem to feel that way a couple hours ago, when you had your lips on mine and I was kissing you . . . what was it that I had promised? Like never before? Yes, that was it." He winked at her. "Did I succeed?"

She let out a breath of air in one quick, short gust. "Don't talk about it." She hissed quietly.

"Why not?" He turned on her, gazing into her eyes. "You said just one kiss, you never said I would be forever banned from speaking of it ever again."

"Well, now you are." Emma said stubbornly, not meeting his gaze.

Killian took her wrist and turned her towards him. "Tell me you didn't like it." He challenged. "Tell me the only reason you acted like that was to make me feel better, or because you were just caught up in the moment. Tell me you never wanted me to kiss you and I promise I will never, ever do anything out of turn again."

Emma opened her mouth, ready to let the words fall out of her mouth, but her breath caught and she couldn't do it. "I can't." She whispered.

"And why not?" He wasn't smug, like she expected, he was looking at her intently, his eyes locked on hers, gazing deep into her ocean blue orbs.  _So much like the sea. . . ._

Emma yanked her wrist away from his touch. "Forget it." She said. "You have no idea what went on on that beanstalk, or why I said you could kiss me."

"Then tell me." He said.

"Because . . . because I needed a way to prove to myself that I could trust you. I mean, how the hell was I supposed to know whether or not you were going to come with us off that beanstalk and then there would be Cora waiting, and we'd never have any way of getting back home."

"Yet you still don't trust me. After everything I've done. For you, your mother, your friends."

"Trust doesn't come very easy to me, no offense to you." Emma said.

Killian regarded her closely, giving her that look that always made her feel like she was overly exposed, like he could see her, all of her, her body, her face, her soul, everything. "It was someone, wasn't it?" At her shocked look, he continued. "Someone did this to you. To make you feel so . . . alone. To force you to put up all of those walls and keep everybody locked out. Keep them from seeing the real you."

Emma shook her head. "Don't try to act like you've got me so figured out." She said. "You don't."

"Well, then, maybe I want to have you figured out." He said. "Tell me about him. The boy's father."

"Neal." She was so startled that she had guess right that she said his name without thinking. It had been so damn long since she had said that name, it felt foreign on her tongue. "How did you know?" She asked.

"Open book, love." He whispered hoarsely, his eyes lingering on her lips. She self-consciously tugged it between her teeth.

"Sit down." She said, sliding down against the tree until she hit the hard, solid ground. "Your going to need it for this tale."

Killian sat down next to her. He hadn't expected to have agreed so . . . quickly. He guessed it had something to do with the fact that they were alone, together, lost (yes, he'd admit it), and he had finally made a little dent in those steel walls of hers.

"I was seventeen. And right out of foster care. I'd run away. Knowing that I'd been abandoned was hard enough for me, enough to make me push everybody away. I was working as a petty thief, just robbing convenience stores, stuff like that. But then I found this car . . . I'd had my eye on it for a while, and then when I finally got the nerve to take it, there was someone in it. We ended up working together, we lived in that car. And we fell in love. Or, I guess we did. Well, I know  _I_  did, but he-well, we were planning on quitting the whole take-whatever-isn't-nailed-down thing, planning to go away together to Tallahassee and buy a house, start a family . . .  _maybe_  get married someday. But . . . there was this case of watches he had stolen. Twenty thousand, at least. The police were still looking for him, and he said that he was going across the border to get safe, start over. Without me. I convinced him that I could go get the watches for him, we could fence them off for the money, go to Tallahassee, and have our life together. The night I did, he went to go meet the guy, and I was waiting by this abandoned old parking station, and then the police were there, and then I was in jail. . . . Two weeks later I found out I was pregnant. I was eighteen, in jail, and fucking pregnant by somebody who set me up and sent me there in the first place! I gave Henry up for adoption the moment I gave birth. I lived on my own for a long time, and then Henry found me, and then I was in Storybrooke, with the curse, and I had to break it, and then I did, and, like, two seconds later I was here, and then  _your_  here, and. . . ." Hot tears began to spill down her cheeks as she spoke frantically, rushing the words out rapidly before she got too choked up to say anything else. "And I  _have_  to get home because what am I going to do without Henry? He and Mary Margaret are the only ones who have never given up on me, and I can't even look at her without seeing Henry, and David, and if we don't get back, then I'll never have a whole family while actually knowing that these people really  _are_  my family."

Killian wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close, stroking her hair softly. "It's okay. It's fine. Don't cry. Please." If there was one thing he normally couldn't be more annoyed about, it was seeing women cry. He didn't feel the need to comfort them, because he thought they were unneeded. But this was Emma he was comforting, and she was broken, and fragile, even though she always made herself seem so strong and indestructible, and he admired her for that, but if she was crying, it was because she bloody well had the right to. And he knew it, and she did as well.

Emma leaned back, looking at him with glittering eyes. "I'm sorry." She said, pulling back, and Killian knew that their moment of-whatever that was was over. "I shouldn't have broken down like that-"

"You had every right to." He said. "I mean it. That bastard . . . I don't know how he could have done that to you." Killian stroked a finger down her tear-stained cheek. "Emma, have you any idea just how truly beautiful you really are?" He whispered. She pursed her lips and looked away, shaking her head. Not as an answer, but in denial. "You  _are._ " He insisted, forcing her to look at him. He held her chin in his hand, tilting her head up to look at him. "So gorgeous."

Emma blinked once and slowly untangled herself from his embrace. "We should continue on. Maybe they're looking for us." She got up and ran a hand through her hair.

"Then we should sit still. Make camp for the night. If you're lost in the forest, the best thing to do is to stay put." Killian said.

She hesitated, looking back into the depths of the darkening forest, and nodded. "Okay. You do know the dangers more than I do." She sat back down, a little closer than friends would suggest, and settled in comfortable. "We don't have any tents. Or . . . anything." She observed.

In an attempt to make her feel better, he gave her a leering smirk. "All you have to do is say the word, love, and I'd be happy to help you warm up any day."

Emma rolled her eyes, a disgusted look on her face, but they both knew her heart wasn't it, and there was a playful glint in her eyes.. "Keep dreaming." She snorted.

"Oh, I do." He said, his voice rough and low. "Every night since I met you."

Emma's eyes widened, just a fraction, then lowered her head before he could see she had a reaction to his confession. He head, though, and he grinned. "Come, darling. Lets get to rest." He gave her his coat to use as a blanket, cutting off her protests with the fact that he never got cold, and settled down on the hard ground.

"That hardly looks comfortable." She grimaced.

Killian shrugged. "S'not. But its something to lay on." He stated. "I've spent many nights sleeping on worse."

Emma looked at the coat she had in her hands and set in on the ground. She took off her jacket, folded it up lengthwise and set it on the ground. "There. Now you have a pillow." She said, laying down next to him and curling into his side. She took the coat and set it over them both. "And a blanket."


	5. Lost and Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Check Yes Juliet' by We the Kings

  
**Chapter Five**  
Lost and Found  
 _"Run, baby, run. Don't ever look back.  
They'll tear us apart if you give them the chance."_  


Emma woke up to the feeling of warm arms wrapped around her waist, her head resting on rough, hard material. Her eyes fluttered open and she saw that it was Killian's chest she was sleeping on. She prepared to get up, raising herself up to stand.

"No." A hand yanked her back down. She let out a startled yelp, and then all of a sudden, Killian was on top of her, her wrists pinned above her on the ground, him straddling her hips.

"Morning, love." He grinned at her.

Emma took a shaky breath, and tried to adjust herself so she could be more comfortable. Killian sucked in a breath, his eyes darkening, and he bowed his head, breathing heavily. She raised an eyebrow, and smirked as she realized that her movement pushed her hips flush against his.

"Don't." He choked out hoarsely.

"Then get off me." She challenged.

Killian leaned down so their foreheads were touching and kissed her cheek before rolling off her, ending up lying on the ground. Emma propped herself up on one elbow, resting on her side and smiled at him. "Morning." She said.

He gave her a sidelong look and glanced back up at the sky. Emma took her jacket out from under their heads and put it on again. "Tell me." She said simply. "About . . . you."

Killian looked over at her and furrowed his brow. "What do you want to know?" he asked curiously.

Emma shrugged. "Everything. How you became a pirate, why . . . Milah." She whispered the name, looked at him through her eyelashes.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and drew her closer. "You have to promise to stay quiet, love. This story is not one for interrupting, and I am an extremely impatient man,"

"Somehow, I figured that." Killian put his finger to his lips and shushed her, and she smiled back at him.

"I was born to a very respectable family, believe it or not. As you can imagine, I never really liked playing by the rules. I hated everything about it. All of the stiff, uncomfortable clothes, acting like a complete gentleman. And especially knowing that when I was of age, I would be set up in an arranged marriage. I wanted to be in charge of my own destiny. If I was ever to be married, I wanted it to be for me. For love. When I was fourteen, I ran away from home. I had to change everything about me: I cut my hair, changed my appearance, my clothes. I became a pirate. Left my whole life behind, all for a life of freedom. And I can honestly say that I regret not one single part of it. The price I had to pay for my freedom was a small price. I never had the best parents to care for me. I was the youngest, with three older sisters and two older brothers. It was Janina, then Alise, then Daniel, then Michael, then Mckayla, then me. When I would do something wrong . . . I would be punished. Severely. And not with words To my parents, nothing came without consequence. I believe them. It's how I myself think now. When I got my own ship, the Jolly Roger, I got myself a crew, and we set sail. We went everywhere, for no reason other than the fact that we could. Stopped anywhere we wanted, took in the sights, had ourselves a couple of the wenches, and left. At some point, we ended up going to Neverland. Beautiful place, you'd really love it. I think I should take you there someday, to see the expression on your face when you get a load of that place. We stayed, for a time, before going back. And that . . . that was when I met Milah. In a tavern, it was my second day there, and me and my crew made it a ritual to visit. We got along with Milah. Everyone loved her. I . . . I fell in love with her. On our last night in town, she came to us, after everybody else in the village was sleeping. She said she wanted to come with us. Wanted to become a pirate, have adventures of her own. Oh, and we had adventures. We fell in love with each other. We made a plan. To go back to Neverland. All of us. We were . . . a family. Close as brothers, the whole crew was, and Milah was . . . very important to all of us. We visited a bar the night we planned it. I encountered Rumpelstiltskin, or the Dark One, as he was called at the time. He challenged me to a duel. And I went, later the next day. He tried to take my heart. Milah rescued me, and we made a bargain. He wanted a magic bean, and we had one. The bean for our safety. He agreed, but he asked Milah how she could have left her son. And she said her misery clouded her judgment. How she never loved him. And he took her heart. Crushed it right in front of me. She died in my arms. He cut my hand, to get the bean, but I had put it in my coat. It was a lost cause. So I became Captain Hook, and dedicated every second of my life to avenging Milah's death. I don't think I remember a time that I wasn't so . . . filled with rage at him. He took her from me, and I have never been the same afterwards. I went back to Neverland, gained immortality, tried to find him, tried to find a way to kill him, but . . . I never found his weakness, his dagger, I could never find him. That's why I need to go to your world, so badly, Emma. I will always love Milah, for as long as I live. There's no way for me to deny that. She changed me too much. Changed us all. I would be . . . nothing without my revenge. I would feel as if I'd failed her somehow. I can't let him live. Can't let him live knowing that he killed the one person who I ever loved. I don't know if I can ever love again, but she was the first woman I did. You can't keep me from my vengeance, I won't let it. Believe me when I say that I would never hurt you, Emma, but I will find a way to kill Rumpelstiltskin."

Emma moved her hair from her face and looked up at him. "Did you . . . was she your . . . was she-"

"My true love?" He finished. She nodded and sat up on her knees, hands clasped in front of her, resting on her lap. "I thought so. I truly did love her. I will never doubt that. But I think that what drew her to  _me_  was the promise of freedom I could give her, not having to worry about any responsibilities. I don't doubt that she loved me, either, but I think she loved freedom more. She could never have loved me as much as I did her. Even while we were together, I think I knew it on some level. I could never imagine her settling down willingly. She was too . . . free-spirited. I hoped, but when we agreed to go to Neverland, she was the least happy. And she showed it, too. Never took anything seriously. Maybe that was her real downfall."

Emma touched his face for a moment, and his eyes drifted closed lightly, the eyelashes fluttering against each other. "I know what it's like, you know." She announced. "Having someone you care about die in your arms. When I came to Storyrbooke, there was a sheriff, before I became one. His name was Graham, and in this land, he was . . . the Huntsman. The Evil Queen, Regina, Cora's daughter, she hired him to kill my mother. And he went, but he spared her life. And he lost his own heart when she found out. When the curse happened, they were having a secret relationship. And one day, he kissed me, and memories of his past life came back to him, and we went to find his heart in Regina's father's crypt. And she found us, and he . . . broke up with her, I guess. And she hit me, and we got into a fight, which was how I got this." She gestured to the tiny scar above her eyebrow where Regina had punched her. Killian rested two of his fingers there, and she jumped at his soft touch barely brushing her skin. "Anyway, he went to help me get cleaned up, and we kissed, and one moment he was fine, and then . . . he was just gone. Henry said that the Queen crushed his heart, and after hearing your story . . . well, I guess she did." Her voice choked up a little at the end, and she wrapped her arms around her knees, drawing them up to her chest and resting her chin on her legs.

Killian stroked the fingers on her scar down the length of her face, starting at her temple, down her cheek, and then resting on her full bottom lip, running his thumb over it. "You keep saying we have nothing in common at all, but everything you've said so far about your past, with your boy's father, the sheriff . . . and with Milah . . . its all pointing in the other direction."

Emma shook her head, just barely, scared of his fingers leaving her skin. "I don't believe in fate." She insisted.

"Maybe it doesn't have to be fate. Maybe it just has to do with the fact that we're two . . . very damaged people, who need comfort from each other. You loved, I loved, we both lost . . . you twice." He removed his hand from her face, and rested on her neck, fingers spread apart so his thumb reached down to her collarbone. "We need each other, and you can't deny it. For the first time, since Milah . . . well, I can't say you're the first person I've said this to, but I can say it's the first time I've meant it. I didn't think it would have been possible to feel anything for anybody, no matter who they were, family, companion, lover. I didn't think it would exist. I thought she was my true love." He kissed her eyebrow, and then followed the same path as his hand, purposely avoiding her lips, and simply ghosting his lips along her neck, loving how her eyes closed in pleasure. "And then you, you bloody infuriating woman, you come along, and you change everything, and you kiss me, and then I kissed you, and then you  _let me_  kiss you, and I thought I was the luckiest guy in the world because I knew you didn't let just anybody do that."

Emma smiled a little. "Well, you're not wrong." She murmured. "Okay. So maybe you're right. But, Killian . . . I need time. I need to find my mom and Mulan and Aurora, and we have to get back to Storybrooke together, and I need to see my son again. But . . . for now, I guess. . . ." She gave him a small smile and kissed him once on the lips. Short, sweet, lasted maybe three seconds. He was not happy at all.

"You call that a kiss?" He snorted.

Emma shrugged. "Wasn't it you who said it could be the most purest thing in the world?"

"I also said it could be the most sinful."

He attacked her, springing on top of her and kissing her forcefully, shoving his tongue past her lips without asking for permission. She gasped, and wrapped her arms around his neck, tugging at his hair roughly. "Emma." he whispered, kissing her again, and again, and again, just tiny little pecks against her soft lips. He didn't make any move to deepen them, letting her just lay there underneath him. he had a feeling she wouldn't have minded if he did try to deepen the kiss, but now they needed comfort. Just like he said.

Emma sat up straighter, her arms still around his neck, and kissed him, their lips moving together as if they belonged with each other. He knotted his hand in her hair, twisting it roughly as he kissed her more fervently now, forcing her lips open and plunging his tongue inside. He lifted her so that they were both sitting now, and moved her onto his lap, tilting his head up so he could reach her lips. They fought for dominance, as they did with their conversations. This was just another way of communicating for them. Killian leaned back, and she followed, not wanting to break the kiss any time soon, and he ended up laying on the dirt with her on top of him. His hook traveled up her thigh, inching its way up under the material of her tank top. Emma jumped as the cool metal hit her bare skin, and turned to see that it was under her shirt. Killian took advantage of her turned head and leaned upwards to ravage her neck. She moaned and she fell forward, her chest hitting his, and he sucked hard on her collarbone, hoping to leave a mark.

As if she could read his mind, she pushed him back and sat up so she was sitting straight on his thighs. "Don't leave a mark." She ordered. He grinned at her and put his hands on her hips bringing her forward slightly so they were pressed against each other. Emma gasped and she braced her hands on the ground on either side of him, breathing deeply. Killian groaned, low and deep in his throat. He hit his head on the ground, eyes closed blissfully, lips slightly parted as the sounds escaped them. He moved her forward again, and Emma moaned again. He changed their position, rolling her over so fast she didn't know he was doing it until it was already done, and he was on top again, grinding into her hips, his forehead pressed against hers. Emma moved to make work of the buttons of his shirt. "Take it off." She said breathlessly.

He stopped his movements so he could unbutton the rest of his shirt, and for the first time in a long time, Killian Jones couldn't get his usually quick and clever fingers to get the buttons out of the holes because Emma had raised her head and began to kiss his neck softly, her hands tracing the bit of exposed skin the shirt-which was still  _bloody on_ -provided. "Stop." he whispered, barely audible. She ignored him, making soft sounds in the back of her throat as she started to help, unbuttoning from the bottom of the shirt. Finally, it was open and she pushed it off his shoulders, leaning back to look at his bare chest. She ran her nails down his abdomen, the muscles in his stomach trembling from her touch. He took her hands in his and scraped his teeth furiously at her bottom lip, not quite kissing her. Emma gasped and lifted her hips up to meet his just as he brought them down, and Killian let out a muffled cry. Emma wrapped her legs around Killian's waist and brought their lower bodies together. Killian slipped his hand under her back and lifted her up, arching her back. He ripped off her jacket and discarded it somewhere around them.

"Oh-God," Emma breathed as Killian's hand rested lightly on the side of her breast. She cried out as he finally cupped her in his hand, and she threw her head to the side, thrashing wildly as he looked into her eyes mischievously, his thumb brushing over her nipple. She dug her ankles into the small of his back and rubbed herself against him.

Overwhelming heat overtook her, flashing through her body in quick, short spasms. She rolled her hips and Killian gripped her hips in his hand and hook, making sure not to rip her clothes, trying to stop her movements. "Wait," he said.

Emma ran a hand through her hair and looked at him. "What?" She huffed.

"If we don't stop now . . . I don't think I'll ever be able to stop." Killian breathed deeply and looked down at her.

Emma looked at him for a moment, then nodded, unhitching her legs from his waist. "You're right. We should . . . try to wait until we go back home. When we get everything back in order."

He smiled at her. "So . . . we're definitely going together?"

Emma nodded. "Yes. I promise."

"Well, well." A voice sounded from behind them. "Isn't this a nice turn of events."

They turned to look who had spoken, who had found them, and Emma gasped. They looked at each other in shock and said at the same time:

"Cora."


	6. War of the Worlds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Broken Arrow' by Pixie Lott

  
**Chapter Six  
War of the**  **Worlds**  
 _"What do you do when your hearts in two places? You feel good but you're torn inside  
You feel love but you just can't embrace it, when you found the right one, at the wrong time."_  


Emma shoved Killian off of her immediately, not even caring that he hit the ground with a painful "oomph!" and stood up. "Cora," she said. "What are you doing here?"

"Taking what's mine," Cora replied, holding out her hand. "Now, the compass, if you please."

Killian joined Emma again, his shirt back on, his hair messed up. "No,"

Cora raised her eyebrows incredulously. " _No?_  Hook, how do you think you got that compass in the first place? My counter spell. Give me the compass."

Emma shook her head. "No."

Cora sighed exasperatedly and shrugged. "Fine, then. I guess you'll never see your companions . . . again."

Emma froze. "What did you do with them?" She asked quietly, a steely edge to her voice.

Cora laughed once. "So easy to break." She smiled innocently. "If you hand over the compass, I'll lead you to them, and then you can all live on together." She turned to Killian. "You, however, well, I'm just going to kill you."

"No."

Killian turned to Emma, shocked at her quick refusal. "Emma-"

Emma turned to him and leaned in close so only he would hear. "I'm not letting her get to you." She whispered. "You helped us so far, and proved that you really were on our side. I'm going to help you get out of this, with Mary Margaret and Aurora and Mulan, and we'll be able to go home. Together."

"Any day now. I'm known for my calm and patient personality." Cora spoke up.

Emma shot her a glare over her shoulder and gave Killian a look. He nodded. "Together." He promised.

Nodding, she looked back at Cora. "Okay. Where are they?"

* * *

Emma stumbled into the pit, and was immediately wrapped in a hug. "Mary Margaret!" She choked out, hugging her back just as fiercely. Her mother held her tightly in her arms, as if reassuring herself that she was really there.

Mary Margaret let go and looked deep into her daughter's eyes. "Are you alright? Where's Hook? Oh, God, he's working with Cora, isn't he? I knew he shouldn't be trusted-I told you!"

Emma shook her head. "He's not with Cora. He's working with us. I promise."

Mulan rose from her spot on the ground. "You're sure?" When Emma nodded, she still wasn't so sure, but she sat back down.

Aurora looked around. "Where is he now?"

Emma sniffed once quietly and folded her arms. "Cora's taken him to kill him. And I need to stop her before she can. And find a way to keep the compass from her while doing it."

"Well, you can't do it without our help." Mary Margaret said, throwing Emma a small smile.

Aurora nodded. "We're with you, if you're sure he's on our side."

Emma took a deep breath. "I'm sure." She thought of their kiss-well, kisses-and her face heat up, blushing red. Emma never blushed.

Mary Margaret squinted at her. "Are you okay? You're very flushed."

Emma shrugged and looked away. "Just . . . never mind. We have to save Hook."

* * *

Cora sat in a high-backed chair, looking down at Killian as he sat, wrists chained, glowering at her hatefully. "You chose her." She said finally. "Used my own counter spell to help her up the beanstalk, get the compass from the giant, and you were planning on overthrowing me to get the ashes and return with her to Storybrooke. Why?"

Killian raised his eyebrows. "I plan on telling you nothing with my hands bound like a prisoner."

"Would you tell me if I unchained you?"

"No."

Cora cocked her head to the side. "Then I'll just have to get on with it. Kill you now. Pity, really. You and Emma made such a cute pair. Shame you'll never have with her what you could have had with Milah. And you'll never get your revenge on Rumpelstiltskin. Remember how he took her from you? Ripped out her heart, like I'm about to do to you, and crushed it while she lay in your arms, and you could do nothing to prevent it?"

Killian's eyes darkened and he lunged, but Cora's hand entered his heart as soon as he got close, and he yelled out in pain. An arrow whizzed past their heads and Cora looked over to see Mary Margaret, Emma, Aurora, and Mulan running toward them.

"Let him go." Mulan ordered, drawing her sword.

"Give me the compass." Cora countered.

"No."

Cora ripped out Killian's heart and looked at it, almost curiously, as he fell over. She inspected it with a small smile on her face. "You came just in time, then, to see me kill him." She glanced at Emma and shrugged regretfully. "Too bad. I was just telling Hook, you know, that you would never have the chance to see what might have happened between the two of you." She threw her hands out and stuck the five of them to the wall, still holding his heart. Ropes sprung out and bound their wrists and feet together, gagging their mouths, and then fell to the ground. "I want you to see me go through that portal. See the look in your eyes as you realize that you have no way home now."

She carried them magically in the air as she walked out to a small lake close by the haven. She dropped them unceremoniously on the hard ground and removed the vial of ashes from her pocket, and poured it in. The water swirled and opened up into a portal, a dark, deep black hole that could suck anything into it and never have any way of returning. Cora's hand flashed and the compass appeared in her hand, and then she squeezed Killian's heart.

He let out a muffled scream, choking against the ropes gagging him, and struggled against the bonds. And then Cora let go. And then he sprang out at her, shaking the ropes from his body and knocked her to the ground. His hook hovered dangerously above her throat.

Cora looked up at him fearfully as he pressed the tip against her skin. His other hand grappled for the compass, throwing it aside on the ground next to the other girls. Mulan threw her still-tied body toward it, trying in vain to get at it.

"Give me back my heart." He ordered.

Cora raised her hand with the heart and paused before plunging it into his chest roughly, giving it one more painful squeeze before letting go and withdrawing her hand.

Emma moved her wrists cautiously, trying to loosen the ropes, and eventually succeeded. She rolled her wrists and yanked, making a large enough gap for her wrists to slip through. She moved over slightly, inch by inch, and reached out to get the compass, slipping it into her back pocket.

Killian let her go, and stood, and Cora jumped up. She ran to get the compass before Killian, but it was gone. Emma took the gag from her mouth and stood up, trying to help up Mary Margaret.

"Are you coming?" She asked Mulan and Aurora. All they had to do was exchange one look before shake their heads. Emma hesitated, then nodded, loosening Mary Margaret's ropes a little. Cora jumped out at them, and Killian stopped her before she could get to them. He pressed her back into his chest and put his hook to her throat.

"Go!" He said.

"No, I told you I'm not leaving you here!" Emma objected.

Killian smiled ruefully. "Go," he whispered. "I'll be fine."

Emma shook her head and gave Mary Margaret the compass. "Wait here." She ran to Killian and pushed Cora from him, grabbing his arm and running to grab hold of the compass. They put a hand on it, and jumped through the portal.


	7. Homecoming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'A Mess it Grows' by He Is We

  
**Chapter Seven**   
**Homecoming**   
_"You're love drunk, you're blinded, you've lost the ones who loved you most  
This liar's on fire, melted like wax, And you're the one that chose, that's just how Karma goes."_   


Emma's hand grasped for purchase on the stone wall, trying to heave herself up out of the well. She hooked her fingers around the edge and pulled herself up, tumbling over the side and falling on her back.

"Emma!" Mary Margaret shrieked, and she helped her stand up.

"Mary Margaret," Emma gasped, hugging her mother tightly. "We made it. We're back."

A soft thump disturbed their hug, and Mary Margaret and Emma turned to see Killian standing there, looking down at the ground awkwardly. Emma disentangled herself from Mary Margaret's embrace and walked over to him slowly.

"Thank you," she whispered, and pulled him into a fierce hug. Startled, he barely had time to wrap his arms around her waist before she pulled back.

"You really did help us get back home," Emma continued.

Killian shrugged. "It was nothing."

Mary Margaret joined them. "No, it wasn't. You were amazing back there with Cora. Stopped her from taking your heart and everything. We owe you so much." She, too, hugged him, although not as tightly as Emma. Killian didn't even hug her back, knowing she'd let go just as quick. Not that he could even try. She trapped his arms in her own as she hugged him.

* * *

Emma and Mary Margaret walked up to the apartment, arms wrapped around each other's shoulders as they prepared to knock. Emma looked over at Killian and beckoned him closer. He hesitantly joined them.

Mary Margaret raised her fist and banged on the door twice. David opened the door. The moment he saw them, he immediately grabbed Mary Margaret by the waist and crushed his lips to hers in a fierce kiss, hugging her to his chest as tight as he could, as if he was cared if he let her go, she would be gone again.

"Mary Margaret," he whispered into her hair.

They finally let go of each other, and David finally noticed Emma standing there. He slowly walked over to her, with his eyebrows slightly raised, giving her a chance to say that she didn't want him to hug her. But she just nodded and he caught his daughter is his arms and squeezed her just as tightly as he had with Mary Margaret.

When he set her down back onto the floor, he saw Killian. "Who's that?"

Emma looked behind her shoulder, giving Killian a small smile. "A friend," she said simply.

"Killian Jones," he said, offering his good hand to David.

David took it and shook his hand strongly.

"Some people like to call me Hook."

David let go of his hand as if it were a deadly snake. He turned to the girls. "You came back with a pirate?" he asked incredulously.

Emma, before Mary Margaret could intervene, spoke up. "He helped us. A lot. We wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for Killian."

David turned back to Killian. "You kept them safe?" he asked slowly.

Killian shrugged. "More or less. We got into a little bit of trouble at the end there, but, we all made it here in one piece."

"He defeated Cora to help us get back into the portal," Mary Margaret praised.

David looked back between Killian and Mary Margaret and Emma before nodding. "Thank you," he said sincerely. "For getting my family back safely."

"David?" a voice called. "Who is it?"

Emma looked back up at the stairs, her eyes widening as she registered the voice and who it belonged to. "Henry," she whispered to herself. "Henry!"

Henry came running down the stairs, stopping near the bottom step when he saw Mary Margaret and Emma. And then he ran right into Emma's arms, hugging her waist tightly, nearly knocking Emma back with the force of his hug.

"I missed you so much," he whispered.

Emma smiled and knelt down so they were at the same height. "I missed you, too, kid," she said tearfully, wiping a tear from her cheek as she straightened.

Henry hugged Mary Margaret next and looked back at Killian. "He's Captain Hook," he stated matter-of-factly.

Emma's eyes flitted down to the hook poking out of the sleeve of Killian's shirt sleeve and grinned. "Yeah, he is."

* * *

Emma sat down on the corner of her bed, looking around her room. It was as if nothing had changed. As if she hadn't been gone at all.

"You okay, love?" Killian asked from the doorway.

She looked up and nodded unconvincingly, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's so surreal. Being back . . . I never thought we'd make it back," she whispered.

Killian sat next to her. "You did."

Emma didn't miss the tightness in his voice as he spoke. She opened her eyes and looked at him. He was avoiding her eyes, looking the other way. "What's wrong?" she asked. He shook his head, and thumbed the curve of his hook. Emma stiffened. "You're going after Rumpelstiltskin."

Killian nodded slowly. "Aye. I am," he confirmed.

"Don't."

He looked over at her sharply. "What do you mean,  _don't_?" His eyes darkened. "You're telling me to just let it go? Let three hundred years of revenge go?"

"Aren't you the one who told me that maybe Milah didn't love you as much as you thought?" Emma cried.

"It doesn't change the fact that I loved her, and she died in the worst possible way." He leaned in closer to her so their lips were almost touching. His voice was hard and cruel and malicious when he spoke next. "Don't tell me that you don't want to kill Regina for taking away your Sheriff?"

She slapped him. Hard.

His head snapped to the side and his cheek was already reddening from the impact. Killian turned back to look at her. Her eyes were blazing like blue fire, and her body was stiff as a board, nothing like the girl he had kissed just a few  _hours_  ago. The one who's walls he came so close to breaking down.

"Don't talk about Graham," she warned.

"I can't let him live knowing that he got away with killing the one person that mattered to me."

"Have you ever even tried?" Emma pressed.

Killian squeezed his eyelids tightly shut, trying to find a way to make Emma understand. Or just make her  _shut up_. How could he do that? How did he do it before?

He kissed her, then, fiercely. Hot, and passionate, tongues and teeth and it was like a bloody war was raging through their mouths as they battled for dominance. He moved his hand to her hair, wounding his fingers through it and tugging slightly.

Emma froze for a moment before pushing him back. "Stop!" she hissed. "You can't do that. You can't just-just kiss me and then act like that's going to make everything alright, okay? It's not."

Killian paused, leaning back. "I am going to get my revenge on Rumpelstiltskin, if it is the last thing I do. I will destroy him, just like he did Milah."

Emma let her breath out in a quick rush of air. "Then get out," she ordered.

He stopped. "What?"

"I don't want you near me or my family ever again, if you are so hell-bent on getting your precious revenge on Rumpelstiltskin, for a woman who you even admitted probably never even loved you the way you loved her. So, I'm telling you right now, before I do something I know I will regret, get out of my house, and don't come here." He didn't move. " _Get. Out._ "

Killian stood up, and Emma did, too. She leaned against the doorjamb, hoping that he wouldn't leave, so that she could see there was still something there for the two of them. She almost gave into it when he stopped by the doorway and turned to her. He stood there, staring at her in silence, and then he leaned in, just a little bit, and if she wasn't so used to watching him, she would have missed it. But he didn't kiss her, he only stepped away from her and, with one last parting glance she swore she saw regret in, he left her.


	8. Walls Crumbling Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Heart' by Pretty Reckless

  
**Chapter Eight  
Walls Crumbling**  **Down**  
 _"Never wanted to feel Never wanted you to steal my heart  
Never wanted you to know Never wanted to show I'm weak_ _."_  


"Swan."

Emma nearly jumped out of her skin. She turned around slowly, wishing that the voice she heard was some kind of sick hallucination. It wouldn't be the first she'd had of him since he'd left the room a week, two days, and eleven hours ago-at her request, nonetheless. But it was him.

"Hook."

She saw the way his eyes tightened. "So we're back to Hook, now, are we?" he said coldly, and he loved the way Emma flinched at his rough voice.

"What are you doing here in the forest,  _Hook_?" Emma asked, tightening her coat around her and shivering.

He noticed. "You're cold. Come with me."

Emma raised her eyebrows. "Where? It's . . . a forest. We have nowhere to go."

He gave her a grin, and for a moment they were themselves again, not these people that acted like strangers together, skirted around each other, trying not to say anything that might blow the other up. Normally, they challenged each other, made the other's temper blaze because it was the only time they would be able to see their true emotions instead of the cool, collected calm they always wore.

"You're father came across me by chance after our . . ." Killian cleared his throat uncomfortable, " _disagreement_. Told me about a little cottage in the woods that could serve as a place to stay while I was here. Deep in the woods, protected from prying eyes, . . . unwanted guests."

Emma knew what he was talking about. David had went out the door a couple minutes after Killian had left. He had come back a short while later, his cheeks red and refused to say where he'd been.

"I promise I don't bite . . . much." He winked at her and led her through the woods with a familiarity that unnerved her. "So, why are you here?"

Emma shrugged. "Felt like walking," she replied shortly.

He didn't press. He knew. They walked in a silence filled with tension so thick you could cut it clean through with a blade. Or his hook. Finally, they came to the small cottage Emma had heard about, where Mary Margaret and David had hit out in during that storm. He opened the door and went to sit in a chair, looking at her curiously as she stripped off her coat. His eyes went straight through to her soul, knowing everything she was thinking. And he definitely knew what was coming.

"You didn't go after Gold."

Killian nodded. "Aye. I didn't."

Emma bit her lip and walked over to him, leaning her hip against the table. "Why?"

He leaned in closer to her, his eyes on her lips. "Maybe I didn't want to. Besides, I didn't notice you going around telling the whole bloody town that I was here."

Emma turned away. "Maybe I didn't want to," she said.

Immediately, Killian stood up, and he almost knocked the chair he was sitting on over onto the floor. He stared deep into Emma's eyes, his own bright with sudden fury. Emma tried to take a step backwards, but he followed, and she took another step, and then his hands were on her shoulders and he had her up against the wall in half a second.

"Hook-"

Killian pressed his lower body into her hips and she let out a strangled gasp, her head falling back against the wall. "Don't call me that," he hissed.

Emma looked into his eyes, and she took a deep, shuddering breath. Finally, she whispered, " _Killian,"_

His lips crushed against hers, sliding his hand and hook down her arms to her wrists, trapping them against the wall. She gasped into his mouth and tangled her hands into his hair, kissing him back fiercely. He played with the neckline of her tank top under her leather jacket, and when she let out a small whimper, he promptly tore it straight down the middle and shoved it off of her, along with her jacket. He tried desperately to get her bra off of her and then it was gone, and she was there, exposed for his eyes, and he had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. Killian put his hand on her, and she moaned, but it wasn't enough, because she'd said his name and he knew he would never be able to get enough of it now that he'd heard it leave those perfect lips that made those perfect noises. But he wanted her to speak  _his name!_

"Say my name, Emma," he murmured against her lips as he forced his hips against hers roughly. She refused. He began to unbutton his shirt as he fell to his knees and wrapped his lips around her pink nipple, making her let out another moan. " _Say. It._ "

Emma breathed in deeply through her nose and tilted her head back against the wall. "No," she whimpered weakly.

Killian straightened and took her breast in his hand roughly. "Emma," he gasped. His voice was not sweet, or gentle. "Please."

Emma looked up at him and blinked slowly. She raised a hand to his face and rested it on his cheek. "Killian," she whispered.

He leaned in closer, brushing his lips against hers, and looked back at her. She nodded once slightly, but it was enough. He leaned in the rest of the way and caught her lips in his. He shifted his knee so it separated her legs, and settled comfortably against her body. Emma looked up at him as their lips parted, and bit her lip.

"Please say yes," he whispered against her lips. "Please say it."

Emma nodded, but he shook his head. "Say you want it."

"I want it," she said.

He smiled slightly. "What do you want, Emma, love?"

Her lips parted and she paused slightly. "I want you."

Killian's smile turned into a full-blown grin and he picked her up and sat her down on top of the kitchen table. "What do you want me to do?"

She wrapped her hands around his neck and looked him straight in the eye. She took a deep breath and told him, loud and clear, "I want you to fuck me."

Killian froze and then his grin turned predatory. His grip on her waist tightened. "Well, love, if that's what you want." He struggled with the laces of his pants and tugged them off. "A little help would be nice, love," he said. Emma helped him get the leather pants off and wrapped her legs around his waist, bringing his body closer to hers. He paused for a moment, looking deep into her blue eyes, a complete look of awe masking his face. Emma looked back at him, blinking with a slightly dazed look on her face, and her hands slowly slid up from his neck to his hair and tightened her grip on it, making him grunt as she pushed their lips together and kissed him. She felt the curve of his lips as he smiled against her mouth, but she didn't care because of the way he was making her  _feel_  . . . and he was whispering her name, and the way he said it, you could mistake him for praying to a god.

Killian moved her backwards and climbed on top of the table with her so he was straddling her hips, pressing himself full against her. "Tell me," he said hoarsely.

She let him go and leaned back against the table. "Tell you what?"

"Tell me exactly what you need, right now. . . ."

Emma bit her lip and pulled him even closer. "I need you . . . I need you inside me, right now.  _Please_ ," she begs. It sounded like a broken prayer, begging for mercy for the most enjoyable pain she'd ever experienced. And then, suddenly, he was inside her, and she couldn't keep the cry that bubbled up to her lips and escaped as she felt him fill her up. Her back arched off the table and she clung to his hair like a vice, as if it were the only thing keeping her tied down to earth at this point.

Killian started a fast and furious pace, thrusting in and out of her roughly, never breaking stride. Their hips came into contact every single time. "Oh…God…" She moaned as one of his hands found her breast again and squeezed. His hands were so very cold, and she shivered as they left a trail of goose bumps on her overheated skin, and Emma pushed against him.

"Oh!" She gasped as his mouth found her breast and nipped at the puckered flesh.

It was all too much. The pleasurable pain from his relentless rhythm left her dizzy and breathless and frantic for release. She tightened her stranglehold on the sheets as she felt herself building so hard and so fast that she feared that her pounding heart would give in on her. Letting out a hoarse cry as she peaked, Emma shuddered and tightened around him.

Emma gripped his body tightly as she raised her mouth to his shoulder and bit down hard. Killian growled in response, his hands clutching at her waist convulsively as he stiffened and came. He continued to move, thrusting shallowly in time with his harsh breathing, until he finally stilled inside her. " _Fuck._ " He hissed. Emma came soon after, letting her orgasm rip through her entire body, crying out Killian's name like a chant.

The strength in his arms gave out and he collapsed on top of Emma. She leaned back against the table and looked up at him. "Thank you." She whispered.

He lifted his head off her chest and looked up at her tiredly, squinting to see her. "For what, love?"

She shrugged and ran her fingers lazily through his dark hair. "Everything."

But he was already asleep.


	9. The Price of Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Teenage Wasteland' by Lana del Rey

  
**Chapter Eight**  
The Price of Love  
 _'I know that they say that all I want is to have fun, and get away for rainy days.  
I know they think I've come undone, but I'm in love. I wanna run, run, run away.'_  


When Killian woke up the next morning, the first thing he noticed was that Emma looked absolutely breathtaking when she was asleep. Her lips were parted slightly, her hair fanned out on the pillows below her, one hand tucked underneath her head. She looks pure, innocent, like an angel, and he didn't know how he was allowed to look at her, let alone touch. He stroked a finger down the side of her neck, the same neck he had kissed and bitten in the throes of passion and pleasure. He had her once more that night, but it wasn't anything like their rough, quick romp on his table. He was gentle, he was sweet, and he worshiped every inch of her lovely body. He had pleasured her in every way possible, with his tongue and fingers and his cock. They had taken their time the second time that night.

The one thing he hadn't expected to happen, was that he hadn't expected to  _feel_  so much for her. Oh, he cared for her, he knew that and he told her, but that . . . it was something he hadn't felt in a long  _long_  time.

Emma's eyelashes fluttered slightly, and Killian's eyes snapped up to her face. He noticed how her eyes were clouded with sleep and, underneath that, surprise. She reached a hand up to rest on the scruff covering his face. "You're still here," she whispered hoarsely, her voice tainted with sleep.

Killian smiled softly. "Of course I'm here, Emma," he said, loving the way her name sounded on his lips. He'd called it out and shouted it to the gods last night, but it sounded so much prettier and delicate when it was whispered softly, falling like a secret off of his lips.

"I'm used to no one being there when I wake up," Emma replied.

Killian wrapped his arms around her waist-she was still naked, he noticed, and he was, too-and held her to him. "I will always be here when you wake up, Emma, as long as you want me to." He kissed her hair and leaned back.

Emma smiled a little bit and kissed his lips softly. "Thank you."

He smirked. "You were telling me that last night, but I was already asleep before you could tell me what for. Care to explain?"

"I said everything. I meant . . . staying with us the whole time, helping us stop Cora, getting me back to my son, climbing that beanstalk with me. Just . . . everything. Really."

Killian smiled and kissed her again deeply. He plunged his tongue inside her mouth and reveled in the feeling of it dancing with hers. Her arms wrapped around his neck and brought him closer to her. He had his hand on her waist, his hook stroking the side of her face. She let out a moan and rolled them over so she they were no longer on their sides, and she was straddling his naked hips. Her hands traveled down his sides until they reached his stomach and she let her fingers dance lightly on the soft, tan skin there. Killian breathed in deeply through his nose, and he crushed his lips harder to hers as she finally grabbed him in her hand. He let out a strangled cry and bucked his hips up. Emma moved her hand up and down, stroking him slowly, drawing it out for him. His thrusts began to quicken as she sped up her pace, and then her hand was gone, and he was about to protest, flip her over, and have his way with her, but she quickly sank down onto him, and all thoughts were erased from his mind as she started to lift her hips and bring them back down against his. He put his hand and hook on her waist, controlling her timing. Every time she slammed down, he thrust his hips up, hard. Emma leaned down and bit his shoulder and he growled. He threw her off of him onto her back on the bed and took her wrists in his hand, forcing them above her head, and entered her roughly, slamming into her as she screamed his name. Finally, the pleasure was too much for him to take, and, with a hoarse cry, he thrust into her one more time and the strength in his arms gave out, and he fell on top of her, breathing heavily. Emma let out a high-pitched gasp, and she went limp as she fell down from her high.

He looked up at her with a dazed expression on his face and smiled, kissing her on the lips softly. Emma shoved him off of her and curled in on herself, resting her head on the pillow. "Let me go to sleep. I'm exhausted," she muttered.

Killian snorted. "I do have that talent, it's true." He ignored the lazy glare she sent his way through half-lidded eyes and settled down next to her. "Don't worry, love. I will be here when you wake up."

* * *

Killian walked through the forest, listening to the quiet hum of nature as he looked through past the trees. Emma was still sleeping in the cottage. He'd left her a note on the pillow telling her where he was and he'd be back soon. A twig snapped from somewhere behind the trees and bushes and he turned around quickly, his hook twitching. And then a man stepped out. Someone Killian knew. Someone he remembered.

"You look different here, Crocodile," he commented, looking Gold up and down. "Like the coward I met so long ago. Limp, and all."

"And yet," Gold started, "you still can't kill me."

Killian's eyes narrowed. "So what are you going to do then? Kill me? Go ahead."

Gold raised his eyebrows. "I'm not going to kill  _you_." He emphasized the last word dramatically.

He furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?"

"Leave," Gold said quickly.

The first thought that came into Killian's mind was Emma. "Why?" he asked.

"Do you really think that I hadn't noticed you were here? I know everything that goes on in my town, Hook. And I know that Miss Swan over there in that little cottage of yours cares for you. So, if you don't leave this town right now and never come back, I will kill her. And I will make you watch as I do it. And then I will kill you."

Killian stiffened. "You wouldn't dare touch a hair on her head," he said threateningly.

"Wouldn't I?" Gold challenged. And then, all of a sudden, Killian was against a tree, and Gold's hand was wrapped around his throat, and he was choking him, and,  _oh, god, he couldn't breathe!_  "Leave town, and never come back. I never want to see you again!"

He let go of Killian, and he had time to take just one heaving breath before a cloud of dark red smoke enveloped him, and he was gone.


	10. In Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'Kinda Outta Luck' by Lana del Rey

  
**Chapter Ten**  
In Dreams  
 _'Babe, you can see that I'm danger. Glamorous, but I'm deranged, yeah_  
 _Teetering off of the stage, yeah. I said it really nicely so can you be my savior?'_  


_Emma could sense that he was near her. Very close. She ran for him, trying to find him, trying to get back to him. Because something was wrong. Very, very wrong. She could sense that, too. There was a break in the trees, and she ran for it as fast as she could go. And then he was there. But he was hurt. And covered in blood, why was he covered in blood? He was gasping for air, his chest heaving up and down, and then he saw her and he beckoned her closer and she walked slowly towards him, taking it step by step, and_ there wasn't any time for that _, and soon she was running to him and he had her hands in his and he was coughing up more blood. She stroked his face and moved his hair away from his eyes so that she could stare into them. He tried to tilt his head up, to tell her something, but it took too much of his strength, too much, and it seemed like a lifetime before he was finally able to speak and not let his head fall back onto the ground. His trembling lips parted slightly and Emma couldn't help but kiss them softly, tasting blood on her mouth and feeling the corners of his mouth quirk up into a slight smile. He took in a deep, shuddering breath, and put his lips right up against her ear so he was kissing it, and he spoke one word:_

"Forest,"

* * *

Emma opened her eyes.


	11. Chapter Eleven

Emma burst through the door, walking straight to the kitchen where Mary Margaret and David sat at the counter, drinking a cup of coffee. The moment they saw their daughter, they were on alert.

"Where were you?" David asked immediately.

Emma looked down. "I was out. I know I should have called, save me the lecture. But I need to talk to you guys. Is Henry okay? Where is he?"

"School. I sent him off. Told him that you left for work  _really_  early this morning." Mary Margaret kept looking at Emma with those eyes of hers, as if she knew where she'd been and what she'd been doing-what she'd done.

"Okay. Okay, that's-that's fine. Good. We have a problem." Emma said nervously, pacing back and forth and running her hand through her blond curls. She could feel that they were still messy from last night. Oh. That must be why Mary Margaret kept looking at her like that. "Hook is in trouble." _  
_

David raised his eyebrows. "In trouble, how?"

"Well, I had a dream, and I saw Killian. And he was laying in a forest, and he was covered in blood. And I woke up, and-and I just knew that it was real. And he's in trouble, and we have to help him."

Mary Margaret came up to her and put her hands on Emma's shoulders. "Okay, calm down. We'll go get help. We'll-we'll go to Gold or Regina to try and find help. See if they can find him."

* * *

Emma opened the door of Regina's office and found her sitting at her desk. "Regina. We need your help."

She looked up like she was expecting her, with that weird smirk she always had on. "And what could I possibly help you with?"

"I need you to find someone for me."

"Who?"

"Hook."

Regina raised her eyebrows in surprise. " _Captain_  Hook? Why do you need to find him?"

"He's been here. And I have to find him. Something's happened, and I think he's in trouble."

"What's in it for me?"

Emma had known that was coming, and she said the one word she knew would work: "Henry. Find Hook, and I swear that you will get to spend as much time with Henry as you need as long as he's back in his bed in my apartment before nine."

Regina broke, just like she knew he would. "You want to find Killian Jones. Answer one question." She gave Emma a wicked, knowing smile. "Why?"

Emma stared back at her, unable to answer. "I-I. . . ."

Regina's smile grew bigger and she disappeared behind a closed door. She came out five minutes later with a small golden object that looked like a magnifying glass. "Killian Jones."

The glass started to fog up, and it became filled with smoke. It began to change colors, from blood red to acid green, royal purple, and then hot pink, and then it was changing colors so fast Emma couldn't keep up, until it finally settled on a gorgeous blue-the same gorgeous blue as Killian's eyes. Then it faded and it became an image of Killian, still bloody and still in the forest. It was a very familiar forest. Like someplace she's seen a million times in storybooks and places.

Regina leaned in closer. "He's in Neverland."

* * *

Emma rushed home and ran upstairs, ignoring Mary Margaret and David, who were sitting at the counter, having a cup of coffee. "Emma?" David called.

She went to her room and took a bag, filled it with clothes, and went back downstairs. "Pack a bag," she said. "We're going to Neverland."


	12. The Rescue

Emma sat against the tree, rocking back and forth, her back thumping against the bark rhythmically. She watched as Mary Margaret, David, and Regina tried to figure out where they were and how they were going to track down Killian.

"Why are we just sitting here doing nothing? We should be looking for him," Emma said.

Mary Margaret looked at her daughter sympathetically. "Honey, I know you're worried about Hook, but we need to find out where he is first. Then, we have to find out where  _we_  are so we can go in the right direction."

Emma leaned against the tree and closed her eyes as she began to think of the last night she had with him. Of the time when he told her about Milah. About his old life. Had she even asked him about Neverland? She was here right now, and she wished that they would have been there together. It was so beautiful, and she couldn't believe that the first time she was here, he wasn't with her.

"I got him."

Emma's eyes opened and she looked to see Regina holding up that golden magnifying glass thing. The image was different than before: This time it was of Killian, tied up and gagged, unconscious on the ground. It seemed almost black wherever he was.

"Someone's moved him from the last time we saw him," Regina stated as she ran her finger around the edge of the glass.

"Do you know where that is? It looks like he's in some kind of den."

Regina shook her head. "No. No, he's not in a den. He's in a cave."

"Do you know where that cave is?" David asked.

"No. We'll have to look."

Mary Margaret looked anxiously at Emma. "We don't have time to look all over Neverland. He could be dead in a few hours."

"Well, we'll go check once we know where the goddamned cave is!"

* * *

Emma shifted uncomfortably on the ground. It was nighttime, and they weren't any closer to finding Killian than when they had first came here. Everyone else was asleep, and she just stared at the stars scattered across the black sky. There were dozens of them. Everywhere. She didn't think she had ever seen so many stars in her life, and not just because no one could see them in Boston. The sky was full of them, and some of them looked like they were clustered together to form one big one.

A scratching noise interrupted her thoughts and she turned as quietly she could, and closed her eyes almost all the way, looking out through the slits of her lids. Regina was crouched next to the magnifying glass, tapping it repeatedly. She looked like she was muttering frustratingly to herself.

"What is it?"

Regina jumped, almost dropping the glass, and looked at Emma. "You scared the living hell out of me."

She sat up. "What are you trying to do?"

She averted her eyes. "Nothing."

"Why do you keep touching the glass like that? Are you hiding something from us?"

"There's a reason why I didn't tell you this at first. You would get your hopes up and then it wouldn't end up working and we would be right at the beginning all over again. I shouldn't even be here, I don't belong here with you. I'm only doing this so that I can see Henry."

"If you show me, you can get even closer to seeing him once we find Killian."

Regina paused for a moment before finally passing the object to Emma. "This magnifying glass can also pass as a portal of some sorts. If you get it right, you can dive into whatever image you're looking at. It took me years to do it right, but I did it, and even then I only succeeded twice out of the hundreds I've tried."

"Why does it only work sometimes?"

"You need to be very powerful to get the portal to work. This thing may be small but you need to have a lot of energy, and you need to be sure you have enough. If you overexert yourself, you can kill yourself."

Emma raised her eyebrows. "So then, what if we use our power and energy combined, and then we're only using half of our own, and we can get the portal to work and rescue Killian. After that, we can get an image of Storybrooke and get the hell back home."

"You think that will work?"

"I hope so." Regina looked at Mary Margaret and David. Emma followed her gaze. "I'll wake them. If this works, we could be home within a few hours." She walked over to her parents and touched Mary Margaret's shoulder. She immediately shot up and began searching frantically for her bow. "Woah, woah, it's just me!"

"Emma? What's wrong?" David asked s he sat up, yawning.

"Regina found a way to get to that cave."

"How?"

"That magnifying glass. It's a portal, too. The two of us will use our powers combined and get it to work, and we can go rescue Killian and get home."

Mary Margaret and David exchanged a look. "You sure that's going to work?"

Emma shrugged. "I'm hoping I'm right." She went back to Regina and they took each other's forearms. "Ready?"

"Concentrate," Regina ordered.

Emma nodded and shut her eyes tight. She thought of Killian, of having him with her again . . . of Henry, her son who she loved more than anything in this whole world . . . of Mary Margaret, who had been her best friend and then the mother she wished she had growing up . . . of David, who had helped her though all of this, given Killian the cottage to live in. . . . She thought of Storybrooke. Her home.

"GO!" Regina shouted at Mary Margaret and David. Emma opened her eyes just in time to see the two of them disappearing through the glass. When they were gone, Regina looked at her. "Don't let go, okay? We have to keep it working until we're through."

Emma took a deep breath as she felt herself falling, falling, falling. . . . And then she was on the ground. Hard ground. Really hard. She was going to have a bruised back soon. Regina let her go and picked up the magnifying glass, and pocketed it.

"Here we are."

* * *

The best part of this cave was that it was completely one way. All straight. No twists, or turns, or forks in the road so that they had to split up. The worst part was that the bastard who put Killian here thought this through really well and put him as far back as the fucking cave went. They were walking for a half hour before Emma eventually saw a red glow up ahead.

"There. Looks like someone lit a fire."

Regina led the way as they trudged their way to the fire. There, hands tied above his head to a branch, ankles knotted together, and a gag in his mouth, was Killian, lying flat on his back with his eyes closed.

"So you found him."

Emma turned around to see Gold there, that weird smirk on his face. "Gold. You did this?"

"Of course I did. Who did you think did? Cora? She's dead. Just thought you might want to know."

Regina looked down with her arms crossed over her chest. David stepped forward. "Just let him go and we'll forget about all of this. We'll go and stay as far from you as possible."

Gold pretended to consider. "Hmm, . . . no, I don't want to do that."

Mary Margaret strung her bow and leveled it right at his head. "Well, I don't want to do this. But I just might."

"You think that can kill me? I'm the Dark One! Immortal!"

"Until someone kills you with that dagger of yours," Regina spat.

"And that dagger is hidden. And very, very safe, mind you."

"Let Hook go!" Mary Margaret burst out.

"Or what?"

Regina started to fiddle with her jacket pocket, and Emma saw the outline of a fist. When she brought it out, she blew a puff of something gold and sparkly in his face. "Fairy dust. Not just for flying. Fairies in Neverland are particularly . . . vicious."

Gold's eyes widened for half a second before he fell to the ground, knocked out.

Emma ran to Killian and untied his bindings. "He isn't waking up," she said.

"God knows what that man did to him while he was trapped here. When we get him back, we'll get him all fixed up," David said.

Regina took out the glass again and set it on the ground. "Get him through first," she told them as she took Emma's arms.

* * *

Emma's head hit wood. Great. Now in addition to having bruises on her back, she probably had a concussion.

"Emma. We're back. And we have to take care of Killian."


	13. Peace

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song is 'No Surprise' by Daughtry

  
**Chapter Thirteen:**   
**Peace** _  
"_ _Our favorite place we used to go, The warm embrace that no one knows._ _  
"The loving look that's left your eyes, But I know in time we'll find this was no surprise."_   


Emma woke up to bright blue eyes and a warm body pressed up against hers.

"Morning, love."

Killian was looking down at her with soft eyes and a soft smile.

"I missed you," Emma blurted out, and shut her eyes in embarrassment at her impulsive statement.

Killian kissed her lips slowly. "I missed you, too."

"You were unconscious. How did you even miss me?"

"I dreamed of you. Of your eyes, of your lips. . . . how we kissed . . . how we made love in the cottage." He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her again, a kiss that she knew was going to lead to something no matter how hard she tried to stop it.

As if she'd ever try to.

Emma kissed him back, smiling against his mouth. "I can't believe you're back here. When I woke up again, and you were gone-"

Killian cut her off with a squeeze of his hand on hers. "Let's not think of that now. I'm back, and I swear that I will never leave you again, not if I can help it. If you'll have me, I will wake up next to you every single morning and fall asleep with you every single night for the rest of my days."

"Stop that."

"What?"

"Making me want to kiss you."

He kissed her again and rolled her on top of him slowly. He lifted her shirt off of her, and then her sleeping shorts, discarding them somewhere in the room. Emma helped him with his pants, and thanked him silently for deciding to sleep shirtless. He helped her settle on top of him, and rested his hands on he hips, controlling her movements, setting the slow, languid pace. He kissed her neck, and chest, her arms, everywhere he could reach, and her hands tightened in his hair, pulling roughly as she climaxed, shaking as she came down from her high. She finished Killian off with her hand, and curled up next to him when they were done.

"I love you, you know that, right?" Killian whispered in her ear as he circled his arms around her bare waist, pressing his chest to her back.

Emma sighed sleepily. There was a time when she would have been so afraid of those words. "I know. I love you, too."

She was still hard, and untrusting, and he needed time to let go of Milah, no matter how he felt about her or Emma now. They were alike, they were different, but he believed they were meant to be together, and she had a feeling he was right.

A pirate and a princess. No doubt they would have more arguments than most people could handle. She was proud, and he was an ass-most of the time-but she didn't think there would much trouble as long as there was make-up sex in the world.

Their love story was different, it was difficult, unusual, and it was going to be hard to make it work. It wasn't any Snow White and Prince Charming romance, but it was just as amazing. And Emma had a feeling it wasn't over just yet.


End file.
